Return of the Antagonistic Lady Boss-Chapter 585 - 559: Daughter and the Boss

"We don’t need you to tell us; we’ll exert ourselves. This case is like a sword hanging over our heads, and I won’t feel at ease until it’s solved." Lin Ze Guang gritted his teeth. This suspect is too cunning; so many police forces can’t find him.

"You still have the same hatred for evil. I remember you said when you joined the army that you wanted to become a SWAT officer, and now you’ve finally achieved your dream."

Lin Ze Guang was about to praise Yu Minglang in return when he heard Yu Minglang add a teasing remark. 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

"You said that once you became a SWAT officer and couldn’t solve problems, you still had to seek help from us in the special forces. According to the law of negation of negation, the unity of progressiveness and twist in the development of things, you have twisted around in a big circle and ended up back at the starting point, hahaha!"

The last three laughs made Lin Ze Guang want to pummel him.

"Just you wait, our SWAT officers aren’t pushovers either. I refuse to believe we can’t solve the case without you!"

Their gazes clashing with sparks flying, Qian watched from the side and added leisurely.

"Is this the legendary love-hate relationship?"

"..." Yu Minglang felt disgusted.

Lin Ze Guang was also disgusted, as they glanced at each other before turning their faces away. Who wants to be friends with such a gorilla/fox?!

Lin Ze Guang would continue his patrol, while Yu Minglang took Chen Xiaoqian for a late-night snack.

Eating delicious crab roe soup dumplings at night, making one’s legs weak, felt terribly indulgent. Chen Xiaoqian found that since Yu Minglang returned, her evening eating habits became increasingly out of control.

Grilled skewers were one thing; they even had the sinful hotpot, and now, in the middle of the night, he took her to eat crab roe soup dumplings. She refused verbally, but ate more cheerfully than anyone else.

The soup dumplings here were authentic. The thin skin appeared crystal clear; lifting one showed the soup shimmering inside. The rich broth paired with delicious crab roe was a supreme pleasure on a hungry night.

Since there were no outsiders, Yu Minglang ordered a bottle of rice wine for Chen Xiaoqian, avoiding beer while eating crabs to prevent gout and other diseases. The rice wine invigorated and warmed the stomach to counter the coldness of the crab.

The joy of wine and food dispelled her upset feelings from the livestream. Yu Minglang worried Chen Xiaoqian was disturbed by the incident and deliberately chose light-hearted topics to chat about, distracting her.

"Qianbao, do you know the alias of rice wine?"

But unexpectedly, this topic triggered Chen Xiaoqian’s sorrow.

"In a certain place in the south, after a daughter’s first cry when she is born, her father brews daughter’s red wine from glutinous rice and buries it under an osmanthus tree, akin to the buried fatherly love. Rice wine is the collective term for this type of wine. When the daughter marries, she takes it as her dowry to her husband’s family. The first three bowls taken from the jar are presented to her father, father-in-law, and husband, symbolizing family prosperity. This wine is daughter’s red; in some places, they brew yellow wine to celebrate having a son, called champion’s red. But if the daughter dies young, the wine consumed will no longer be daughter’s red, but changed to huadiao."

This topic made Chen Xiaoqian very sad, affecting her appetite.

Yu Minglang didn’t know why she suddenly put down her chopsticks. He thought she was still upset about being harassed during the livestream and was about to comfort her when a man in a white uniform came from the kitchen, carrying a plate of spicy crab claws to Chen Xiaoqian’s table.

"Wine and food have emotions. What you said is a misunderstanding. In my hometown, huadiao originally got its name from the wine being stored in engraved and painted jars. The custom of huadiao marriage came from this. When we have a daughter, we congratulate huadiao entering the family, symbolizing a father’s deep love for his daughter and conveying longing and affection. I think every father gives his daughter all his unconditional love."

"Not all fathers are like that." Chen Xiaoqian thought of Chen Lin.

"What you see in form may reveal essence to a certain degree; beyond phenomenon lies emptiness. Everything before you could be true or false; follow your heart."

Chen Xiaoqian found this person spoke unusually, looked at him a few times, honestly not believing these modern philosophical core theories came from a chef, if he weren’t wearing a chef’s outfit.

The man placed the spicy crab claws on the table, Yu Minglang glanced at him, "We didn’t order this."

"It’s on me, a friend from afar comes. I happened to make this; I’m Xuan, the owner here." The man smiled gently at Chen Xiaoqian and Yu Minglang before turning away.

Yu Minglang glanced at his back. This person’s aura was different from ordinary people. He and Chen Xiaoqian had the same thought: this person truly didn’t seem like a chef.

After the restaurant owner explained, Chen Xiaoqian felt less sad. She calmed her mood and shifted her melancholy.

"By the way, do you know why the father often goes to stomp the soil under the osmanthus tree where the daughter’s red is buried?"

The correct answer is that stomping makes one feel secure, like a father wanting to raise his daughter peacefully and steadily.

But Yu Minglang turned it into a tasteless explanation.

"If it were me, I’d stomp hard while angrily thinking, ’If anyone dares bully my daughter, I’ll stomp them into jerky until the grass over my daughter’s adversary’s grave is three feet tall when the jar is opened!’"

"..." Chen Xiaoqian was speechless; this guy truly knew how to ruin classics.

After settling the bill, Chen Xiaoqian and Yu Minglang headed out. Xuan, the owner, called them.

"This is for you, take it back and drink."

Chen Xiaoqian took the bag and found a bottled daughter’s red inside when she opened it.

"This isn’t quite appropriate, is it...?"

After receiving spicy stir-fried crab as a gift during the meal, departing with another gift seemed rather odd.

Yu Minglang took out his wallet, "How much is it? Let me pay for it."

The owner waved his hand.

"It’s given because we’re on friendly terms. Besides, if you don’t drink it now, you can bury it together, waiting until your hair turns gray to open it, sharing the fragrant wine."

This blessing was good, and Yu Minglang was very delighted, cheerfully accepting, "Then I also wish you prosperity in your business."

"I never lack money, but I prefer the blessing of family reunion." Xuan smiled slightly at Chen Xiaoqian.

Once Yu Minglang led Chen Xiaoqian out, Xuan finally toned down his smile, removing the white chef’s jacket, which he despised for its poor quality and kitchen grease smell.

Two people emerged from the kitchen shielded by a white curtain, one handing the man a jacket, the other respectfully offering a napkin.

Xuan wiped his hands to remove the unwanted kitchen grease smell, then donned the jacket, instructing the blonde foreign-looking girl who handed him the jacket.

"Keep an eye on Chen Xiaoqian, understand?"

"Yes - but my payment..."

"It won’t be short once the job’s done."